New 90ft class announced for 33rd America's Cup

by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World NZL on 5 Jul 2007
The Protocol for the 33rd America's Cup has been announced in Valencia today

The announcement of the Protocol and class of boat was made at made at noon Valencia time.

The features of the 33rd America's Cup Protocol are:

• A new 90ft overall class will be used, with a sliding, as opposed to a canting keel, to reduce draft. Alinghi design team will draft the Rule for the class.
• The Match will take place between 2009 and 2011. Depending on the venue selection.
• Valencia is the first venue option, but if that is not quickly resolved then a three month venue bid process will start.
• The Challenger Commission is scrapped and a Competition Commission will be instituted. the parties on the Commisison will consist of Competitors, the Challenger of Record and America's Cup Management (ACM). The Competitor Commission will be consultative only.
• ACM will run the Match and Challenger Selection Series (previously the Louis Vuitton Cup).
• The Defender (Alinghi) will be allowed to race in the CCS but not in the Final of the CCS.
• The single Jury has been split into an Arbitration Panel and an International Jury, which will hear sailing matters. The Arbitration Panel will hear commercial and non-sailing matters and may also be a level of appeal form Jury decisions.
• No racing in the new class for 18 months, Existing boats to the ACC V5 Rule will be used for Qualification regattas before that time.
• Michel Bonnefous to step back from his current role in ACM

 

Additional points and comments/explanations, in order of announcement are below:

America's Cup Management claimed a TV viewership of two billion over the four years and quoted other impressive media and viewership statistics.

The Spanish club Club Náutico Español de Vela is announced as Challenger of Record.

No venue announced, will be selected before 31st December. If going to be in Valencia will be 2009 otherwise 2010 or 2011

CCS may have qualifying regattas to select the teams going forward to the main event.

Will be a best of nine (first to win five) races for the America's Cup as for the 32nd America's Cup

America's Cup Management will continue. There will be a Competitor Commission comprising Defender, Challengers and ACM to determine the basis of the competition.

The existing International jury will be scrapped and replaced with a Sailing Jury and an Arbitration Panel

There are no nationality rules for crew or designers.

The designers will be locked into a Team 30 days after class rule issued, and will not be able to move after that time. Sailing crew will have to be contracted by October 2008.

The Competition Regulations will be announced before before 31 December 2007 and will be determined by the Competitior Commission.

America's Cup Management will continue to assume full financial risk of the regatta.

The new ACC Rules may provide for yachts having a maximum length overall of ninety feet in length overall, a draft whilst racing of 6.5m, but with a compulsory sliding keel system capable of reducing the draft to 4.1m for entering port and docking.

Have period of 18 months between issue of the new rule and first race.

In the meantime V5 ACC yachts will be used for racing and qualification series.

If Valencia is confirmed as avenue, it will be done so very soon. If not, then a three month selection and bidding process will begin.

'Haven't really thought about the new boat. Want one that is bigger faster and more exciting to sail. have to come up with a rule for that. The rule will need enough time to allow people to build - about 20,000 man hours required to build a 90fter,' said Alinghi skipper, Brad Butterworth.

Michel Bonnefous to step back from his current role, in ACM, no replacement has been announced.

Already have eight or nine teams are committed to continue in the 33rd America's Cup, with maybe two more coming into the competition.

Questioned as to whether Team Origin were happy with their purchase of SUI-71, the answer was 'yes'. Team Origin did not know before today that there was to be a new class. They will need a nACC V5 boat to sail in Qualifying Regattas. There may be a limitation on the numbers for facilities at the venue for the 33rd America's Cup and the qualifying series could be used to eliminate weaker teams, if there were too many for the Cup venue.

The new boat will have a sliding keel without a canting keel. There will be no electric winches, all winches will be manually powered with traditional grinders.

'We will come up with a simple rule covering waterline length, sail area and displacement and leave it at that' - Brad Butterworth.

The 'Box' Rule will be developed by the Alinghi design team, ACM don't want to use too wider a design group as that 'will get nowhere'.

Butterworth expects the new class of yacht to open the class to newcomers and make it easier for the other syndicates to catch up. If ACM had stayed with the existing yacht and rule, Butterworth believes the 'rich would have got richer'.

The main objective of the shorter duration for the event is to limit costs. Alinghi/ACM want to reduce the cost of running a campaign and having a sailing and design team, and having a group operating for four years between events is not seen as a good way to reduce costs.

The Jury will now be split into two bodies. 'With five people involved on the Jury it can be cumbersome so it will be reduced to three.' The Arbitration Panel will hear all commercial and non-sailing matters and will comprise three people who are lawyers or from a legal background. The Sailing Jury will comprise sailing judges to adjudicate on sailing matters.

The Arbitration Panel will act as an Appeal Authority from the Jury Decisions.

Crew numbers on the new yachts is expected to increase to 20 or 21 'have not really thought about it' says Brad Butterworth. 'Wind range for racing will be 8kts to 30 kts'

Butterworth confirms that he will stay with Alinghi 'have some great mates here, and have enjoyed every minute of it.'

'The new boat will be stimulating for the sailing crew and team' he adds.

The question with Valencia being a venue is dependent on the extension of the harbour. What is planned needs to be defined and discussed further with the Competitors Commission and the local Valencian authorities.

A further media session will be hosted by the Challenger of Record, later today, local time.

Not mentioned in the Media announcement, but contained in the Protocol is the ability of the Defender to participate in the Challenger Selection Series as follows:

Trials and Challenger Selection format: The Trials and Challenger Selection format shall be announced by ACM when announcing the Schedule. It may provide for the Defender an option to participate wholly or partly at its discretion in the Trials and Challenger Selection other than the final between the two Challengers to select a Challenger for the Match